BRUNSWICK — Last season, Richmond Hill’s Nick Fitzgerald caught the game-winning touchdown pass in the waning seconds to help the Wildcats squeak by Glynn Academy.

Friday night’s contest wasn’t nearly as close, due in large part to the senior quarterback, who engineered five scoring drives in the second half and led Richmond Hill to a 47-28 win over the Red Terrors in both teams’ GHSA Region 3-AAAAA opener at Glynn County Stadium.

Fitzgerald, a Mississippi State verbal commitment, served as a one-man wrecking crew and showed why he’s going to play at the next level, running for 162 yards on 27 carries with five touchdowns, while throwing for 90 yards and two more scores to finish with seven TDs total.

“Last year, this game was real close, and we had to pull it out at the end, but this year, we didn’t want that to happen,” Fitzgerald said. “We wanted to come out and secure a win early, and we were finally able to break away there in the second half.”

Despite missing three starters on the offensive line due to injury, the Wildcats (4-0 overall, 1-0 region) imposed their will, racking up 421 yards of offense, including 331 on the ground. They also were efficient on third down, converting on seven of 10 attempts.

“It’s a blessing to be 4-0, but it’s truly a blessing to see this group of guys overcome some things and come out and get a big region win,” Wildcats coach Lyman Guy said. “We’ve got some things to do better, but we’re going to enjoy this one. I’m grateful for these kids’ effort.”

With the game tied at 14 at the break, Richmond Hill’s Darius Brown returned the second-half kickoff 26 yards to his own 46, and the Wildcats banged out a nine-play, 54-yard drive with Fitzgerald keeping the ball and scoring from a yard out to make it 21-14.

The Terrors (1-3, 0-1) answered back quickly. Emmett Thomas returned the ensuing kickoff to Richmond Hill’s 38, and Garrison Hurd later powered his way in from 18 yards out to knot things back up.

The Wildcats jumped back out in front quickly with a four-play drive, as senior running back Michael Clark took a toss sweep and rambled 30 yards into Glynn territory. Fitzgerald connected with senior Byron Vick out of the backfield for a 35-yard TD pass to make it 27-21 after a blocked extra-point attempt.

Richmond Hill came up with a huge defensive play on the next drive that swung the momentum and changed the complexion of the game. Terror QB Zach Lamper rolled out to his right and scrambled for 12 yards, but Brown stripped the ball loose and recovered it at the Glynn 28. A personal foul after the play gave the Wildcats the ball at the 13, and Fitzgerald scored from 2 yards out four plays later to boost the advantage to 33-21.

“We really needed to make a play there, and I saw the opportunity and was able to get my hand in there and punch it out,” Brown said. “No matter how tough things got out there, we kept battling.”

Guy commended the senior defensive back on his play.

"The way he's been playing, it's just a reflection his hard work and determination," Guy said. "He's going to play somewhere on Saturdays because he has the work ethic to go along with the talent."

The Wildcats tacked on two more scores to put the game out of reach. Fitzgerald took to the air again, finding a wide open Clark on 3rd-and-long for a 55-yard TD. He then added one more on the ground late in the fourth on a 12-yard scamper.

"The whole game, we knew we could score at will if we kept executing, and you have to credit the offensive line for that," Fitzgerald said. "(Glynn) played very hard and made it tough on us, but we had an answer every time."